THERE HE GOES AGAIN

From Greg Sergent at The Plum Line:

Vitter is chatting with the folks on Rush Radio in New Orleans, and they're joking around about what they looked like in their younger days.

MALE HOST: I wonder if Senator Vitter is ever going to post, like, maybe the video of the first time he was on the floor of the Senate. If I have to show the way I looked the first time I was on TV, you should do that too.

VITTER: We should go further back than that, how about high school yearbook?

MALE HOST: Oh yeah.

VITTER: De La Salle marching band.

MALE HOST: That'd be cool. Well you know, with Rachel Maddow they had that picture of her...

FEMALE HOST: Looking like a woman.

MALE HOST: Yeah it was really bizarre.

VITTER: [LAUGHS]: Must have been a long time ago.

ALL THREE: [HEAVY LAUGHTER]

Heavy laughter? Hilarious - NOT! As the person who sent me the link said, "Disgusting". However, there may be more than a few yuk-yuks from certain folks around these parts.

Greg says:

Hmm, I guess this means Maddow probably won't be the target of Vitter's extramarital charms anytime soon...

How lucky can a girl be!

Here's the link to the audio in all its glory.

THE LEDET FAMILY - FROM THE PICTURE ALBUM

The picture above is of the Ledet Family reunion - a rabble if I ever saw one. My three rabble brats are at the end of the first row on the right. Their rabble parents are at the end of the last row on the right (not the very last group in the middle at the top). My favorite aunt is right smack in the middle of the group, with the reddish hair, and my mother is in the same row, the third down to the right of my aunt. My great-grandfather was a Ledet from Bayou Lafourche. As close as I can figure, the picture is from the mid-1970s.

As usual, click on the picture for the larger view.

THOSE WERE THE DAYS

Those were the days, my friend
We'd thought they'd never end
We'd sing and dance
Forever and a day

We'd live the life we'd choose
We'd fight and never lose
For we were young
And sure to have our way

La La La La La La La La La La La La
La La La La La La La La La La
La La La La La La La La La La La La
Those were the days, my friend those were the days



Up there is Soldier Boy Tom, who won the Battle of Fort Jackson in Columbia, South Carolina, in just six months. As a reward, the powers let him go home with only the stipulation that he check in once a month for the weekend and for two weeks in the summer for the next 5 1/2 years.

When Tom finished boot camp, the sergeant told him, "I know you hated every minute of boot camp, but, in the end, you turned out to be a damned fine soldier."

The next picture is moi, before wrinkles, multiple chins, and weight gain, prim in my Peter Pan collar. Both pictures were taken circa 1960-61, before we were married.

I've been looking through old photo albums, and you know how addictive that activity can be.

MAXINE FRIDAY

 

 

 

Cruel!

Don't blame me. Blame Ann and Doug.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY - POLITICS

"Politics is like driving a car - D for forward, R for reverse."

From somewhere in the Columbia Free Times.

Thanks to Lapin.

GOOD NEWS FROM THE GULF - FINALLY!

From NOLA:

There was no oil flowing into the Gulf of Mexico this afternoon after BP crews managed to shut in the leaking Macondo well.

Good news! But we can't relax yet.

The company is now conducting a "well integrity test" to determine if the well can remain closed until it can be permanently shut with cement next month.

The test will last anywhere from 6 to 48 hours, during which time scientists will measure pressure inside the well. If pressure rises and holds at 8,000 to 9,000 pounds per square inch, the well could remain closed. If it is lower than that level, however, if will be reopened and oil will be sucked, again, to vessels on the surface.

Low pressures would indicate that oil is escaping through one or more fissures in the well.

BP Vice President Kent Wells said he was "encouraged" by the development, but also trying to remain reserved until the test is complete.

"I'm very pleased that there's no oil going in the Gulf of Mexico, in fact I'm excited that there's no oil going in the Gulf of Mexico," Wells said. "Where I'm holding back my emotion is we're just starting the test. I don't want to create a false sense of excitement."

I remain "encouraged" but "reserved", too, and I'm not "excited", yet.

Still, we face the daunting task of getting all the oil that has gushed for more than 84 days cleaned up from the Gulf of Mexico and the marshes and beaches of the coastline.

ARGENTINA FIRST LATIN AMERICAN COUNTRY TO LET GAY COUPLES MARRY AND ADOPT CHILDREN

From Reuters:

Argentina's Senate passed a gay marriage law early on Thursday following more than 14 hours of charged debate, as hundreds of demonstrators rallied outside the Congress in near-freezing temperatures. Senators voted 33-27 for the proposal, with three abstentions.

"We're now a fairer, more democratic society. This is something we should all celebrate," Maria Rachid, a leading gay rights activist, said as supporters of the law hugged each other and jumped up and down after the vote.

Argentine President Cristina Fernandez supports gay marriage on human rights grounds and is expected to sign the law after her return from a state visit to China. The proposal cleared Argentina's lower house in May.
....

Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio, archbishop of Buenos Aires, had raised particular concern about the adoption clause of the bill, saying it was important to ensure that children had as role models "both a father and a mother."

Good news, indeed!

The need for children to have male and female role models argument against same sex couples having adoption rights is unpersuasive and insulting, not only to same sex couples, but to single parents, who often, through no fault of their own, do not have a partner to help in caring for their children. That children have parents or caregivers who love them and attend to them properly should be the greatest concern of anyone who cares about the welfare of children. And what about friends and family members as role models? Children don't grow up in isolation booths.

It's way past time for the Roman Catholic Church, or any church for that matter, to be allowed to dictate what laws should be passed in a country or other political entity.

Thanks to David@Montreal.

GOOD-BYE TO A GOOD DOG

Jonathan (aka MadPriest) and his wife Jane lost their good friend Callum, a noble companion.

Callum was Jane's "once in a lifetime" dog. He was a gentle and loving giant of a border collie, always willing to please and always at Jane's side.

Please extend your sympathy to them at Jonathan's blog.

TAKE CARE

If you cannot decipher anything, then try pulling gently on the outer corner of your eyes.

Don't blame me. Blame Doug.

BASTILLE DAY IN NEW ORLEANS

From NOLA:

They were assigned to different locations in France 65 years ago, but today, five Louisiana veterans will be together at the New Orleans Museum of Art to receive France's highest distinction for their service during World War II.

Ivan J. Breaux of Kaplan, John Copes of Baton Rouge, William Haar of Metairie, Richard Whaley of Lafayette and Frank H. Walk of New Orleans will receive the Legion of Honor, a French order established by Napoleon Bonaparte.

Olivier Brochenin, the consul general of France in New Orleans, will bestow the honor at a ceremony preceding a reception for Bastille Day, the French national holiday. Two other veterans, Voorhies Dewailly and Warren Butcher, also will receive the award but cannot attend the ceremony.
....

Brochenin said the significance of their efforts becomes more impressive as time goes on and fewer people have firsthand memories of the war.

“The sacrifice of these soldiers is unbelievable,” Brochenin said.

The National Order of the Legion of Honor was founded by Napoleon in 1802 to pay tribute to military officials who had served France. Today, French citizens can receive the honor for military or civil work. But it has been extended to noncitizens for outstanding work, including World War II veterans.

“There will be no other, better way for the French republic to show how much we appreciate (them),” Brochenin said.

And there is no better day, Brochenin said, than the French national holiday.

“The national day of France, which is the most important day for the French people...I think that day is the best to pay tribute,” he said.

Merçi, Monsieur le Consul. Although our own government sometimes seems not to care much for the people of south Louisiana, the French still love us. After the neglect following Katrina and the federal flood, we were only half-joking when we pled with France to buy us back.